Cider Cake

I was thinking about this cake when I made the toffee apple cake, the other week. This is another seasonal autumnal cake, but in complete contrast it could not be easier. It takes about 10minute to know-together the batter and only about 30min to bake.

This is a really satisfying cake. There's just more than a hint of apples with a pleasant warmth. It's not too rich nor too moreish: a decent chunk leaves you completely satiated.

It did make me think that actually combining this with the toffee apple cake, such as boiling the dates in cider rather than apple juice, really would result in an absolute cracker-jack of a cake.

When I finally finished it off a week later, I may have slightly embellished with some caramelised apples. Yes, it was goooooooood!

Cider cake recipe (taken from Paul Holywood's receipe on Baking Mad)

Ingredients:

100g butter
100g unrefined light muscovado sugar
2 eggs (large)
225g plain white flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp cinnamon
150ml dry cider

Method:
1. Heat the oven to 180°C. Grease a deep 18cm/7" round cake tin and line the base with baking parchment.
2. Beat the butter and sugar together with a handheld electric whisk until pale and fluffy, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and cinnamon together.
3.Fold about a third of the flour mix into the whisked mixture, then fold in half of the cider, with a large metal spoon or spatula. Fold in another third of the flour, then the rest of the cider. Finally fold in the remaining flour until evenly combined.
4. Transfer the mixture to the prepared cake tin and gently level the surface. Bake for 30–40 minutes, until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
5. Leave the cake to cool in the tin for 20 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and set aside to cool completely.

Apple beignets

On an idle Sunday morning, with nothing much but culinary exploration to fill my time, it seems apple beignets are a delightful breakfast*.

Hot apple swaddled in a crisp sweet batter. What's not to like? 

OK so it is a faff setting up the deep fat fryer, but there's not really any other way of cooking these; shallow frying just wouldn't do it. My fryer is ever so slightly too small, so I had to cook each slice individually, making it slightly more time consuming, but still worth it, I think. That may also account for the slightly reduced "puff".

I never realised beignets were so simple. I'm not entirely sure you need to rest the batter for two hours. I think you could get away with half an hour. I think it depends just how hungry you are...

The batter makes plenty for encasing two apples, which should give you 10-12 slices.

Apple beignets (original recipe from Dominique Ansel from The Guardian)

Ingredients:

125g plain flour
30g caster sugar

Pinch of salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
50ml milk
60ml dry cider
2 eating apples 

Oil for deep-frying

Method:

1. In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Add the eggs and whisk until combined.
2. Lightly whisk the milk, cider and eggs to combine and add to the dry ingredients, whisking until smooth. Add the liquids in little by little to avoid lumps. Let it rest for two hours.
3. Peel, core then slice the apples about 5mm thick. Dip them into the batter, then fry in oil at 180°C until golden brown.
4. Dust with sugar to finish and enjoy them while still hot.

*You should know by now that this blog is about eating tasty food, so don't judge. Besides it's one of your 5-a-day...

Grub Club

I came across Grub Club today:

Grub Club connects foodies with new and creative Chefs across London.

A Grub Club is like a restaurant but a lot more fun! We make sure that our handpicked Chefs serve up the most delicious food in often quirky spaces.

We do our best to ensure there is a communal feel to the meal, so that you get to meet some great people.

Let us take you back to a simpler time when it was easy to meet and make friends......

So yet another opportunity to go out eating and socialising. I need to get on this...

Food idioms

A universal preoccupation with food is apparent in the many idioms based on it. Here are just ten:

1. apples and oranges: two things that are inherently different or incompatible. For example, “To compare The Chronicles of Narnia to the Twilight series is to compare apples to oranges.”

2. bad apple: a negative or corrupting influence on others; a troublesome or despicable person. For example, “One official of a national motorcycle organization argued that a few bad apples shouldn’t be allowed to ruin all motorcyclists’ reputations…”

3. bring home the bacon: to bring home the prize, to achieve success.

In American usage “to bring home the bacon” means “to earn the living for a household.” The expression probably originated from the custom/legend of the Dunmow Flitch. A “flitch of bacon” is a side of bacon, salted and cured. Married visitors to the town of Dunmow in Essex who knelt on two sharp stones and could swear that during the past twelvemonth they’d never quarreled with their spouse or wished themselves unmarried could claim a free flitch of bacon. Another possibility is that the expression derives from greased pig contests at county fairs. The contestant who succeeded in catching the pig “brought home the bacon.”

4. chew the fat: originally the expression meant to argue over a point, perhaps because people arguing make energetic mouth movements similar to what is required to masticate gristle.

In British usage, both “chew the fat” and “chew the rag” mean to argue or grumble. In American usage, the expressions mean “to engage in friendly conversation.”

5. cream puff: literally, a cream puff is a shell of puff pastry with a cream filling. In British usage, a “cream puff” is an effeminate person. In American usage, a “cream puff “is a used car in especially good condition.

6. cup of tea: something that suits a person’s disposition

The expression is used in both positive and negative contexts:

“A Mozart concert? Just my cup of tea!”

“A ball game? Sorry, football is not my cup of tea.”

7. a pretty/fine kettle of fish: an awkward state of affairs; a mess or a muddle. For example, “As the crisis dragged on to the eleventh month, Bishop Segun introduced a pretty kettle of fish to the whole matter when he instituted an ecclesiastical court…”

In researching this post, I discovered that the expression “a pretty kettle of fish” (with the meaning “a fine mess”) seems to be morphing into “a different kettle of fish” or “another kettle of fish” with the meaning “something else entirely.” For example, “Your website needs to be a whole different kettle of fish.”

8. a lemon: something that is bad or undesirable.

Anything that fails to meet expectations can be called a lemon. For example, “Her first husband was a lemon.”

Most often, the term is used to describe a car that has problems from its time of purchase. Individual states have “lemon laws” intended to protect consumers from substandard vehicles. The federal lemon law (the Magnuson–Moss Warranty Act) was enacted in 1975 and protects citizens of all states.

9. full of beans: full of energy and high spirits. For example, this headline: “Hollins still full of beans as he settles in at Crawley Town”

In current usage the expression “full of beans” is so frequently associated with children that it has been adopted as a brand name by child care centers and a children’s clothing store. I’ve always assumed that the expression derived from the idea of a frisky bean-fed horse, but recently I read that at one time beans were considered an aphrodisiac.

10. hot potato: a delicate situation that must be handled with great care. For example, this headline: “Herbert’s ‘Healthy Utah’ Plan Could be a Political Hot Potato”

Orignally posted on Daily Writing Tips

FarmDrop

I've fancied the idea of a veg box for a while but never actually round to sorting it out (I think I have either been put off by the price or the lack of a suitable delivery time/location).

FarmDrop takes the veg box to another level. It provides a pick-up point for produce from local farms and producers. Essentially it's a "supermarket" but without the middle-men. Everything will be local and seasonal (no strawberries in December here!) available to be bought once a week. It might be the just the thing for me.I'll keep track and see if one gets set up reasonably near me...

Edible Experiences

I stumbled upon Edible Experiences today and then instantly wondered why I have only just found out about it now.

It's basically a listing of food and drink related events and activities in and around London village.

Whether you're looking for a cooking, baking or butchery class; a tasting, foraging expedition, or supperclub or pop up, our hosts have something to tickle your tastebuds. Have a browse around. We hope something tempts!

It includes all sorts of classes, talks, tasting and supperclubs. Clearly I will be investigating with vigour. There's no need for there to be another dull moment!

Tasty Art

Tasty Art specialise in food-based art. That is art featuring, not made of, food.

They specialise in London-based artists and feature photographers and artists. It looks like I finally have a reason to do some interior design...

Ice-cream bread

You know how sometimes someone tells you somehting and you just don't know whether to believe them or not? Well, this is one of those times.

My sister just sent me this link to an article about making bread with ice-cream:

http://www.studentbeans.com/student-money/a/ice-cream-flour-bread-honestly4291.html

Now thinking about it a little, I guess it is a bit like Irish soda bread really, so maybe it's not quite as nuts as it first seems. It just doesn't seem right and I still want to try it.

Recipe for ice-cream bread

Ingredients:

2 cups of ice-cream

1.5 cup self-raising flour

Method:

1. Mix the ingredients until combined.

2. Put dough in a loaf tin and bake at 180°C for 45 min.

Norwich delights: The Pigs

I just spent the weekend in Norwich and got taken to a couple of foodie gems.

First up was the most amazing deli: Bakers & Larners.

This place was amazing. It had anything and everything you could think of. High quality local artisan produce aplenty. I just wanted to eat everything there and then. I'm pretty sure if I lived anywhere nearby I would struggle to not spend a lot of money.

That was followed by dinner at renown Norfolk eatery: The Pigs. It did not disappoint.

The Pigs is a countryside pub that place specialises in all things porky. It seemed churlish not to embrace this, so we basically had everything porky on the menu.

We started off with a couple of Iffits which are apparently "the Norfolk version of tapas". Firstly a ham hock scotch egg with piccalilli. It is clear to me that there are few things better than a freshly fried scotch egg. This was a a brilliant example. Beautiful tender hock meat mixed with an occasional cornichon and a soft egg in the middle. All enveloped in a crispy golden breadcrumb coating. Delicious.

To go with the scotch egg we had pigs ears and tartar sauce. What's not to love: crispy bits of pork with a rich yet  pungent dipping sauce. I admit we may have gone a little deep-fried heavy, but, hey, I was on holiday...

We followed these up with a couple more porky iffits (OK so this might have resulted from a slight amount of indecisiveness when ordering as opposed to any great "plan" per se...)

A kilner jar of potted pork was served straight out of the fridge much to its detriment. Once it had warmed a little this was classic rillettes and the accompanying apple chutney was superb: chunky and robust. While we were waiting for the potted pork to warm up we tucked into a plate of honey, marmalade and Colman’s mustard glazed pork ribs. These were excellent, the bones came out clean but the meat still had enough a satisfying bite to it. I wasn't too impressed by the marmalade glaze nevertheless these were good local ribs just don't expect a classic BBQ rib.

By this stage we were getting a little full so decided to share the belly of "Perfick Pork" with smoky bacon beans, apple chutney, black pudding and crackling. This was about as good as pork gets. The belly was perfectly cooked tender and flavoursome. The beans used a mix beans and were absolutely delicious. The black pudding was top-drawer and not too peppery. My only complaint was the cracking - simply not enough of it, only a single crispy shard each.

We didn't have room for pudding despite contemplating it for some time; there was simply no way to fight against the preceding pile of porky protein.

If you're in Norfolk, you should definitely get to The Pigs. I shall be going back for sure.

Penis cake!

I do hope that I never get given, or have reason to purchase, my own Pecker Cake Pan.

Thankfully if I ever do find myself in a situation where I do have said cake tin sitting idly in the cupboard, one woman has made it her mission to find alternative uses.

http://www.penispans.com

I think the Christmas tree cake actually looks pretty good and you'd never guess its origins.

The Food Blog Diary

The Food Blog Diary sounds like just what I need. 

The Food Blog Diary is the place to find up-to-date foodie challenges, giveaways and competitions.

I've been thinking about the fact that I haven't done any challenges or events for quite some time. Perhaps this site will help me get my act together

Get me - guest blogging!

As part of taking part in the £ood Waste Challenge, I wrote a guest blog piece for the Mayor's blog. Here's a sneaky peak:

A tribute to my food waste hero

…

If I had only had one word to describe my food waste hero it would be dependable. Whatever the weather, through wind, rain, sunshine and snow, he’s always there in the corner of the kitchen silently protecting and preserving at a chilly -18°C.

He’s the MacGyver of my kitchen always ready, willing and able to help at a moment’s notice: maybe a little chopped chilli (put into stasis before it went off) to add a spicy kick, a few parsley stalks (otherwise destined for the bin) for the stockpot, or some baked item ready to be toasted straight-away and slathered in butter for an instant satiating hit.

He’s versatile too. I’ll take some mince or chicken thighs, say, preserved before the use by date, cook up a risotto, pilaf, hash or pasta meal then put the extra portions back in. He’s full of tubs and funny shaped bags filled with my own ‘ready-meals’. He’s a safety net for the ‘2 for 1’s and BOGOF’s that sometimes slip into my trolley but not my belly. There’s no way I’ll ever go hungry when he’s around.

I don’t look after him quite as well as I should. From time to time there’s maybe a little too much ice on his back. For that I apologise and I’ll try and do better.

He’s the cornerstone of my strategy for avoiding food waste and I simply couldn’t do without him. Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you my food waste hero: my freezer!

...

For more info on how to use your freezer to help reduce your food waste visit: http://england.lovefoodhatewaste.com/content/freezer-advice-and-facts.

Sign up for the £ood Waste Challenge on the Recycle for London website.

Herman...

Today I baked an apple cake. No biggie, you may think. And, indeed, you'd normally be right. But the basis for this cake was a sourdough starter called Herman the German. (Not to be confused with Herman ze German, the excellent wurst shop in Villiers Street, which you simply must go to if you're in the area and in need of some sausage. Anyway, back to the cake.)

Essentially Herman is a chain letter but in cake form: altogether less pointless and irritating and infinitely more satisfying.

The way it works is you receive a portion of the sourdough and then "feed" and keep it "alive" it for 10 days (I find the anthropomorphisation of a yeast-based starter a bit weird). On the last day it's divided it into four portions, one of which you keep and bake and the other three get passed on. There was a little bit of mix up with my donor so I only received it on day nine (yesterday).

No bad thing for me as it meant I got cake sooner rather than later, but it did mean I had to find some recipients pretty quick smart.

The cake first (after all that's all we're interested in really).

Right, first up this cake is very tasty. The yeast gives it a pleasant tang. It had quite a dense crumb but the huge chunks of apple I used meant it was quite crumbly. It was a touch oily on the bottom, but I think this was because of the butter that had worked it's way down from the top. It would have been even better with demerera sugar on top as that would have given a crunch.

I was quite surprised to have to add baking powder. Surely the point of the yeast is that you don't need baking powder?

The fact that the resulting cake was good strengthened my resolve to pass the sourdough on. Fortunately I have a couple of friends who are quite keen on baking and (more importantly) nearby and easily accessible! The remaining portion is in my freezer as an experiment to see if the yeast will survive in a state of suspended animation.

One of my mates, works with a few Germans and so he brought the subject up with them. Obviously they don't know it as a Herman (I wonder if it was called that because it rhymes with German?). Apparently the Germans were waxing lyrical about friendship cakes:

“I remember the special taste.”

"Honestly. I had one for a while at home. You can bake cakes all the time without big effort.”

My favourite:

“I liked it.”

The thing that intrigued us most was just how old and how many people the sourdough has gone through. There's a part of me that would like to keep track of where my Herman goes. In theory it should multiply quicker than rabbits...

So, if you get the chance to make one it's worth it.

Here's the recipe, which is on the website along with everything else you need to know. Mind you, you'll be getting instruction so you shouldn't even need this!

Ingredients:
1 cup of sugar (8oz or 225g)
2 cups plain flour (10oz or 300g)
1/2tsp salt
2/3 cup of cooking oil (5.3oz or 160ml)
2 eggs
2tsp vanilla essence
2 cooking apples cut into chunks
1 cup raisins (7oz or 200g)
2tsp cinnamon
2tsp baking powder
Optional:
2oz demerera sugar
1oz melted butter

Method:
1. Mix everything together and put into a large greased baking tin.
2. Sprinkle with a quarter of a cup of brown sugar and a quarter of a cup of melted butter.
3. Bake for 45 minutes at 170°C. Cover in tin foil and bake for a further 20 minutes to make sure your Herman is cooked properly in the middle.

PS Just as I received this I got a Baking Mad newsletter which featured Herman as the headline recipe. I also found out Herman had been in the Daily Mail. It looks like I'm just a few month behind the game and that Herman is really quite well known. And there was me thinking I'd found out about something not many people know about!

Scary cake!

I've never really associated cake with scary things, until I came across Scott Hove's Cakeland sculpture website.

Now these cakes aren't actually edible they're made from foam and then decorated with icing. The question that clearly needs answering is "Why?".

Why then, to use an absurd media like fake cake to describe such a story? We all love cake and what it signifies. Celebration. Important occasion. Indulgence. Reward. It is fortunate for myself and my sculptures that our minds are highly suggestive, and that we are willing to tolerate the idea of something artificial to represent what we desire. The representation itself becomes that which is most desirable. These sculptures celebrate the beauty, rapaciousness and absurdity we all participate in.

So, there you go then.

Gourmet Gaming

Gourmet Gaming has a great concept for a food blog: cooking the food from video games. Brilliantly simply and endlessly entertaining.

I love to play video games and I love to eat. Preferably at the same time.
What's even better is eating the food from the game I'm playing while I'm playing it.

Check it out if you're at a loose end on a Wednesday

Food Cycle

Food Cycle is a charity that

combines volunteers, surplus food and a free kitchen space to create nutritious meals and positive social change in the community

The food surplus comes from food retailers which is then used to feed those in need in the local community.

Since 2008 nearly 8000 kg of food has been collected and turned into over 14000 meals.

It's a brilliant concept that simultaneously address a number of vital issues in today's society. just the type of thing to get involved with. You can volunteer at any one of four locations in London and in another nine cities around the UK and I would urge you to do.

Feeding the 5k - TOMORROW!

Tomorrow the second Feeding the 5k event will take place in Trafalgar Square in London.

Feeding the 5000 will show how easy it is to reduce the unimaginable levels of food waste in the UK and internationally. And how governments, businesses and individuals can help.

An absurd amount of perfectly good food is wasted every year in the UK and it drives me nuts because it's almost entirely avoidable! In my opinion, there's absolutely no reason to waste food.

I'm gutted I can't go, especially as I turned up too late for the one in 2009 :-(

I urge you to go along if you can and to pledge your support.

Learn more about why this is so important: http://www.feeding5k.org/

FruitShare

I learnt about FruitShare today.

Find a good home for surplus orchard fruit

Fruit share is an initiative to encourage the local distribution of surplus garden or orchard-grown fruit that would otherwise go to waste. Whether you are a private individual or a commercial orchard, simply register to add the details of your available fruit.

The site is split up into "Fruit Sharers" and "Fruit Seekers" and you use the site accordingly. Essentially the site lets you either get rid of or find fruit straight from the orchard!

Brilliantly simple. It'll be perfect when I finally get round to starting the preserving I've been meaning to do for a while now.

Too Good to Waste

The Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA) has just launched a new campaign, Too Good to Waste, to combat food waste in restaurants by encourage people to ask for doggy bags.

Amazingly for every restaurant meal served in the UK, ~0.5kg of food waste is generated. This SRA campaign is currently running in London and they are offering diners, and restaurants, a viable alternative to wasting food by providing over 25,000 doggy boxes to participating restaurants.

All you have to do is check to see if the restaurant is part of the campaign - check on the website and or spot the sticker in their window - then if there are any leftovers just ask to take them with you.

A completely fuss-free humiliation-less way of making more of a meal out. I encourage you to support the effort, if you can. And let's hope it goes nationwide soon.

Criminally Good Cupcakes

Just found out that one of my friends has a cupcake enterprise.

So here's a blatent plug for Criminally Good Cupcakes.